Link Boxers: Savage ideas; Square Deals at SBX; Are You a Big MOOC?

You’ll have to forgive us. It’s been so hot that we’ve been a little delirious here, trying to get our bosses to double our budget and add five staff members. We tried that after the naked Indian in the desert told us we were the Lizard King and could do anything. After the boss’s laughter subsides, we’ll see if it gets approved. He hasn’t laughed this hard since we asked him to buy the self-driving car for the office. In the meantime, here’s some news from the tech and web world that’s keeping us entertained this summer.

photo courtesy of uncle_shoggoth@flickr

Adam Savage’s Working Ways

Are you as geeked as we are that Adam Savage is going to be the keynote speaker at #heweb12? Then you’ve probably been hunting the internet for every last detail you can find about the guy including what he had for breakfast last….wait that’s a little creepy. Forget we said that. But Adam’s been in the web’s eye quite a bit recently, including this great piece he penned for Lifehacker. You get a look at Adam’s workspace and tools, learn he keeps his inbox under 10 and makes great eggs. Maybe he’ll cook for all of us in Milwaukee.

A Square Deal for Starbucks

I’ve been fascinated by Square for a while now, following their intriguing efforts in online payments and wallets. Now, the startup has found itself dating a big, strong type who loves coffee. Starbucks is investing $25 million in Square, the Wall Street Journal reports, and Square says the chain will eventually use Square technology to process all credit card transactions.

Customers who download the Square app will be able to buy their Venti-whatevers by using their phone or by stating their name to employees at the cash register, the Journal says. Unlike other countries, the US has been slow to adopt the “pay with your cell phone” idea. But we might look back at this deal as the one that got the ball truly rolling here. And if students can do something at Starbucks, it won’t be long before they want to do it in your campus eateries and stores too. Is this something you see your campus embracing?

Meta MOOC is Meta

If you’re looking for something to do this week, and Massively Open Online Courses have piqued your curiosity, you might want to attend this Massively Open Online Course on…wait for it….Massively Open Online Courses. Lee Bessette, over at Inside Higher Ed, is watching this course, and shares some fears and concerns about MOOCs. Bessette writes, “at the end of the day, there are still too many students who don’t know how to learn on their own after years and years of standardization. Just throwing videos, even interactive lectures, don’t necessarily solve that fundamental problem.” And there’s a point there. But Bessette also frets about things like the “casualization of the professorate,” which detracts from the point that a MOOC must be handled carefully and diligently and not just done for the sake of doing it. Frankly, the professorate could stand a little casualization.